Valsad: Hindustan Lever Ltd (HLL) has introduced Annapurna 10-second chapattis, a ready-to-eat product, in Bangalore.

Already quite successful in western India the launch is in line with the company's strategy of offering value-added and healthy foods. At present, the product is available in over 2,000 outlets in the Bangalore.

A pack of five chapattis costs Rs 12. The shelf-life of each pack is four days from the packaging date. They are made at the Modern Foods factory in Bangalore and packed under hygienic conditions, untouched by human hands, which means the consumer is the first one to touch the chapattis. These chappatis can be heated for 10 seconds either on a tawa or in a microwave, without adding oil.

Apart from the household segment, the company is also targeting airlines and companies who can serve these chappatis in their staff canteens.

This is HLL's second attempt at introducing chappatis in the domestic market. A few years earlier, the company had introduced ready-to-cook chappattis. Then available in a pack of ten chappatis for Rs 15, these had to be cooked and puffed before serving. As the product did not take off, the company withdrew it from the market.

HLL's challenge was to develop a fully cooked and puffed chapatti with the taste, aroma and softness of a home-made chapatti at an affordable cost.